Cake Talk: Bloom Where You're Slanted

It's exciting to read a new author.  I'm always thinking, who is this person, and what does she (sometimes he) have to say?  These questions and others unfurled as I delved into Louise Miller's The Late Bloomers' Club.  As a late bloomer myself, I couldn't wait to see just what the phrase meant to Ms. Miller and her heroine.  This is what I found:

Nothing ever happens in Guthrie, Vermont.  So when eccentric cake lady Peggy Johnson dies unexpectedly and leaves her farm to the Huckleberry sisters, it causes a stir.  And not just because the sisters are as different as Mozart and Miley Cyrus.  But because a developer wants to buy Peggy's land to build a small business-destroying superstore.  

Forty-two-year-old Nora has never left Guthrie and dutifully runs her parents' diner.  Thirty-five-year-old Kit has followed her artistic whims all over the world.  So when Kit blows back into town with her besotted boyfriend, there are fireworks.  Kit is fun, and I admire her free spiritedness -- that is, until she starts infringing on the freedoms of others.  Which is exactly what it seems like she's doing to Nora, the novel's anchor and narrator.  Still, there are two sides to every story, and the other side of this one is that Nora is a martyr (to give you an idea, she takes on Peggy's cake baking business as well as the search for her missing dog).  Miller is clever in setting up Kit as the "villain," forcing us to see her through Nora's eyes -- especially when Nora realizes that she's been wearing cloud-colored glasses that made her myopic.  Because maybe Kit has held Nora back -- but maybe Nora has held Nora back too.  The sisters' newfound inheritance forces them to take an honest look at each other and decide what's best for themselves and the town, all while untangling the growing mystery of Peggy's seemingly simple life.

And now it's quote time!  Here are some wise words from Kit's (sort of) Buddhist boyfriend Max:

' "We're all suffering.  I guess I just relate to people who are willing to share more of themselves.  A lot of pain in the world could be alleviated if we could all admit when we're having a hard time." ' (93)

You said it, Max.  And then, of course, there are some fashion snippets I love:

Nora describing a long-gone library volunteer: 

' "Don't you remember her?  She was really cool.  She had all of these interesting dresses, and she always wore red cowboy boots.  I've always wanted a pair." ' (174)

Nora describing Kit:

' "Short, curly red hair, dressed like Stevie Nicks and one of the Disney princesses started a fashion label together?" ' (177)

If such a brand existed, I'd be first in line.  But back to business:

No one in this book is who he or she seems.  And I don't mean that in a sinister, spy thriller kind of way, but in a we're-all-humans-just-doing-our-best kind of way that makes life's problems better, not worse.  That said, Miller gives us multifaceted, sympathetic characters in a beautiful, bucolic setting.  Also, as a bonus, this was the first time I heard the term "leaf peepers" used unironically (I'm looking at you, John Oliver).  Charming yet poignant and tinged with the no-nonsense spirit for which New England is famous, The Late Bloomers' Club doesn't offer easy answers.  But when it comes to the importance of taking a chance, it hits closer to home than anything I've read in a while.   

Movie Moment and Book Report: (Some Last Words on) The Last Song by Nicholas Sparks

Last Christmas, the bf bought me a copy of Nicholas Sparks's latest, The Last Song. Having read and enjoyed all of Nicholas Sparks's other novels, I devoured it immediately. And it was pretty good. Not as good as Dear John or Nights in Rodanthe, but nonetheless entertaining. I missed seeing the movie version when it came out in March, so I rented it last weekend (once again Hot Tub Time Machine was shafted. But its day will come.) Although the movie version of The Last Song was very close to the book, it was strangely disappointing. I find myself having this reaction to lots of movies based on books. (Ironically, I felt the opposite way about The Notebook. I loved the movie but was lukewarm about the book. Maybe that's because I saw the movie first.) I think it's because movies don't allow enough time to build upon all the details that make characters and relationships seem real. For example, in the book The Last Song, readers observe the main character, Ronnie, fall in love with Will as well as reconnect with her father in stages. But in the movie it all happens so fast that you're kind of left not quite believing it (at least I was). Also, Ronnie was a lot edgier in the book, with purple hair and an attitude to match. Although still a surly borderline tough girl, movie Ronnie (Miley Cyrus) is softer, with normal hair and only a discrete nose stud to advertise her rebelliousness. Finally, the theme of fire is more prominent (and therefore scarier) in the book. The villain, Marcus, is always juggling fireballs in view of Ronnie's house (he wields both a creepy romantic interest in her and a secret about Will), and Marcus's girlfriend, the aptly-named Blaze, is badly burned by one of Marcus's fireballs and ends up in the hospital. Also, Marcus causes the proverbial "trouble" at Will's sister's wedding, destroying an entire tent. When I read this scene in the book, it struck me as a made-for-the-movies-moment. But in the movie it's very pared down; although Marcus and Will fight, I don't recall a collapsed tent. All this was topped off by an ending that seemed to occur rather abruptly.

But despite all these shortcomings, the movie was still fun to watch. Although I enjoy writing these movie and book reviews, I sometimes fear that I sound a bit uppity. I mean, what do I know? I'm just a nobody consumer with too much time on her hands. Suppose I were ever to publish my book and people wrote less-than-stellar reactions to it? Knowing my soft-hearted ways, I suspect I'd be sorely hurt. That's how poor Lily felt in Marian Keyes's The Other Side of the Story when reviewers savaged her debut novel. But then again, I enjoy most books and movies to one degree or another. Even the ones I seem hard on. After all, even material I don't 100% love opens up a sort of commentary off of which I can bounce thoughts and ideas.

I think I'm getting a bit punchy. It's time to pack it in.

Make and Tell Challenge, Day 137: A Productive Day at the Trove

Fridays are tough. That's why I conked out last night without completing a challenge. I did, however, manage to watch All About Steve and finish Nicholas Sparks's The Last Song. The movie had a weird plot, but I enjoyed Bullock's quirky character. As for the book, it was vintage Sparks, which is to say it was sad. It's coming out as a movie this spring, with Miley Cyrus playing the lead. In the book, this girl is a purple-haired concert tee shirt wearing rebel. But I guess they wanted to standardize her for Hollywood purposes. Oh well.

So, today. I parked myself at my work station (the very messy living room) and finished painting all three of my wine bags. They're alive with in-your-face color, so mission accomplished. Not being a wine drinker myself, I'm wondering what else can be put in them. I'll have to ponder that.

Next up, more large totes. And maybe . . . wait for it . . . a painting.